Updated July 06, 2017 00:34:53

Photo: Kensington and Chelsea council has been criticised for its handling of the disaster. (Reuters: Stefan Wermuth)

The British government is sending in a taskforce of outside experts to help oversee recovery efforts from the Grenfell Tower fire, after strong criticism of the local council's response.

The Government has ordered an independent taskforce to take over the housing department, as well as other council operations, according to the BBC.

Kensington and Chelsea council has been criticised by victims' relatives and survivors for its handling of the disaster in Grenfell Tower on June 14, which which killed at least 80 people and left scores homeless.

Amid rising criticism from the Prime Minister's office, the Mayor of London and local residents, the leader of the council quit last week saying he accepted responsibility for what he described as "the perceived failings" of the council.

Communities Secretary Sajid Javid says the taskforce will help local officials deal with the "longer-term recovery".

"The scale of the recovery effort needed on the LancasterWest estate in the months to come cannot be underestimated," Mr Javid said.

"Support to survivors, the families and friends of those who lost their lives and residents in the wider community must and will be ongoing.

"The challenge of providing that support is and will continue to be significant."

Has the death toll risen?

While those affected by the Grenfell Tower fire may have to wait some time before responsibility is taken, authorities can act now to help prevent another disaster, writes Feng Fu.

Police have said 80 people were dead or missing presumed dead, but say they expect the number to rise amid accusations from locals that the scale of the death toll is being kept low.

"I completely understand their desire for answers and we are committed to providing as much information as we can, as soon as we can," Commander Stuart Cundy said, adding that all visible human remains had been recovered.

"In total we have made 87 recoveries, but I must stress that the catastrophic damage inside Grenfell Tower means that is not 87 people.

"Until formal identification has been completed to the coroner's satisfaction I cannot say how many people have now been recovered."

The fire has also thrown a spotlight on the safety of exterior cladding used to provide insulation and improve the external appearance of Grenfell Tower and other high-rise blocks.

Since the blaze, the Government said cladding tested at nearly 200 sites had failed fire tests.

Has everyone been re-housed?

Prime Minister Theresa May promised that all residents from the tower would be offered good temporary homes in the local area within three weeks.

But, with that deadline due on Wednesday (local time), many remain in emergency accommodation after rejecting as unsuitable the premises they had been offered.

There has also been anger at the failure to provide definitive answers about those who are missing since the fire.

Reuters/AP

Topics: government-and-politics, local-government, fires, industrial-fires, disasters-and-accidents, community-and-society, united-kingdom

First posted July 05, 2017 23:05:09